NASCAR Sonoma Raceway 2012 Gallery 2

Clint Bowyer takes home first place in The Toyota/Save Mart 350 at the Sonoma Raceway after starting in 6th place.

Marcos Ambrose the pole starter fades to 8th with tire problems, in front of a record track crowd, estimated to be around 91,000. Clint Bowyer's car ran constantly as other cars fell off pace during the surprisingly wreck free day. There were only 2 yellows and no serious wrecks to slow down the track action as Bowyer managed to pass Jeff Gordon for the lead on lap 25 and then lose the lead twice.

Kurt Bush was fighting with Clint Bowyer for a second win, but hit the tire wall and damaged his rear suspension causing control problems with just 8 laps to go. Tony Stewart took advantage of Kurt Bush's ill handling car and passed into 2nd on the last lap.

Rough man Tony Stewart pressured Clint Bowyer for the lead in the last lap, but drove with a smoother style than his normal no-holds-bared form and both cars held position at the line.

Points leader Matt Kenseth, finished 13th giving him a lead of 11 points in the series.

Dale Earnhartdt Jr. came in a distant 23rd on the difficult Sonoma Raceway.

Marcos Ambrose, of Australia,driving for Richard Petty won the qualifying run for the Pole Position in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series auto race, Sunday, June 24, 2012

The Sprint Cup Series makes its annual visit to Wine Country for the race at Sonoma Raceway, formly calld Infineon. Sonoma and Watkins Glen are the two road race courses that the hard pounding NASCAR teams run, and Sonoma Raceway is rated the most difficult to negotiate.

NASCAR runs on both ovals and road courses with the obvious difference between oval and road course racing is the left and right turning of the road course and slow speed corners that are thrown in for good measure. Ovals will present high speed, 3 wide racing, but
road courses have plenty of tire to tire banging. Sonoma Raceway has seating available for almost every section of the track, so not much happens that is not right in front of someone.

NASCAR and the Sonoma Raceway, in the beginning called Sears Point, goes back to first races around 1969 and 1970.

NASCAR returned in 1989. The winner that year was Ricky Rudd. In 1998, the road course was changed to meet NASCAR's request for a track which would allow more passing. The change removed the long sweeping left hander down through the canyon and the long straightaway on the old drag strip out-run from the NASCAR track and shortens the course to 1.9 miles.